Kim Kardashian & Kanye West Meet With President Of Uganda
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West met with Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni, gifting the African dictator with a pair of Yeezy sneakers and discussing ways to boost tourism to the central African nation. The couple turned a blind eye to Museveni’s appalling human rights record, particularly when it comes to LGBTQ rights.
As ET Online reports, Museveni spoke lovingly of their visit with the American couple via Twitter.
“I welcome American entertainment stars Kanye West and @KimKardashian to Uganda. I held fruitful discussions with the duo on how to promote Uganda’s tourism and the arts. I thank Kanye for the gift of white sneakers. Enjoy your time in Uganda. It is the true Pearl of Africa.”
Kanye (now going by just “Ye”), for his part, has shared several videos of his meeting with the African dictator on Twitter, all titled things like “Aha” or “Mind Control.”
Kanye is in Africa to record his upcoming album Yandhi. Why he’s doing that in Africa and not L.A. remains unclear.
Africa is a popular tourist destination, but tourists generally stick to three specific regions when they visit the continent. Northern Africa, for example, has ancient Roman and Carthaginian ruins on the Mediterranean coast, as well as the Pyramids and other ancient Egyptian sites. Southern and Eastern Africa are popular with those coming to see Mount Kilimanjaro or Victoria Falls, as well as with travelers who come to go on safari and see the country’s vast game reserves.
UPDATE: @KagutaMuseveni names @kanyewest Kanyesigye and @KimKardashian will now be known as Kemigisha #NTVNewshttps://t.co/yQXuCO0nlY pic.twitter.com/eqRKobwCwF
— NTV UGANDA (@ntvuganda) October 15, 2018
Central Africa, however, is a bit of a gamble for tourists, largely because several parts of the country are mired in civil wars, and indeed, probably aren’t safe for tourists.
Uganda, in particular, is not safe for LGBTQ tourists. That’s because the country has some of the harshest anti-LGBTQ laws in the world outside of the Middle East, according to Human Rights Watch. The country famously passed the Anti-Homosexuality Act in 2014, which in essence makes being gay an offense punishable by death in certain circumstances. At the very least, the law has allowed landlords to evict gay tenants and has prompted police to arrest, rough up, and even torture people suspected of being gay.
Yoweri Museveni, for his part, said in 2009 that homosexuality is “against God’s will,” according to The Guardian. He also claimed that “European homosexuals are recruiting in Africa.”
Kanye’s visit with Museveni is the second visit he’s made with a president in a matter of days. Last week, Ye visited Donald Trump at the White House in a bizarre meeting that included West talking about superpowers and mind control.
